SINGAPORE– Finastra has announced plans around a range of initiatives which will enable its customers to accelerate through change, as well as creating positive outcomes for millions of people around the world. The move is part of the company’s ongoing innovation and open cloud platform strategy.
Through technology and collaboration, Finastra and its customers are set to positively impact over nine million lives around the world, with key areas of focus in the Asia Pacific region to include:
Bringing financial inclusion to developing markets
- Yoma Bank: Using Finastra’s solutions, Yoma Bank became the first bank in Myanmar to launch an online account opening system. In a country where just 25% of the population holds a bank account, Yoma Bank quickly increased its customer base, giving many people access to banking services for the first time. Since launching its online account opening process, Yoma Bank has been able to provide thousands of new customers with fast, ultra- secure access to their personal accounts across multiple channels – quickly earning a reputation as a pioneer in Myanmar’s financial services sector.
- IFIC Bank: In Bangladesh, less than a third of the population has a bank account. Seeing the opportunity to bring financial inclusion to millions, IFIC Bank looked to transform its entire operating model from the outside-in – evolving into a customer-centric bank and differentiating itself with innovative products and services, available in branch and through new digital channels. Using Finastra’s solutions, IFIC Bank is aiming to bring banking services to 100,000 unbanked Bangladeshis in the next two years.
- TONIK: The Philippines has one of the lowest rates of bank account ownership in the region, with 70% unbanked. As the first pure-play licensed digital bank in Southeast Asia, TONIK is building its end-to-end core banking capabilities on Finastra’s solutions, enabling it to offer easy access to banking services. Powered by Finastra, TONIK aims to provide a route to banking for those who have never been able to open an account and hopes to attract over a million people in the five years after it launches in 2020.
Closing the trade finance gap
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) estimates that SMEs face a global trade finance gap of US$1.5 trillion. This problem is particularly acute in Asia, where many businesses rely on cash and are therefore unable to demonstrate their creditworthiness to traditional lenders. This problem has been further exacerbated by the global pandemic. In response, Finastra has partnered with Mastercard and the ADB to help build a new digital pathway to credit for wholesalers. Through the application of technology, the program aims to help SMEs digitize trade, making it easier for them to participate in global supply chains. The program will start in Indonesia with 500 retailers and aims to build to 5,000 retailers by the end of Q1 2021.
Wissam Khoury, Head of International at Finastra, said, “The pandemic has brought the future forward, driving increased demand for digital transformation in the financial services sector. We’re committed to helping our customers accelerate through this change with our technology and ecosystem. This is also a pivotal moment in which we have the chance to redefine finance for good and create new solutions that put better outcomes for society at the center.”
Finastra’s broad technology product set across lending, payments, treasury and retail banking is powering these initiatives, alongside its FusionFabric.cloud open developer platform. It is all underpinned by a comprehensive suite of data-driven insights applications to improve business intelligence; and a suite of transformational services designed to help customers successfully accelerate through change.
